Roses
by A Kind Kiss
Summary: With two new roommates and a cute neighbour, Bella finds her life changing--fast. After she starts receiving a mysterious rose every day counting up to her birthday, will her opinion on love change as well? All Human.


**Disclaimer: I don't own any of Stephanie Meyer's lovely creations.**

**Roses  
**A Twilight fanfic by _Starfire Star_

Prologue: Dilemma 

One word. Divorce.

It was a word I've known all too well over these past years. No, _I_ have not gotten divorced. I'm only nineteen. But my mother, Renee, has. Multiple times.

The whole experience has rendered me fearful of marriage, and doubtful on the concept of love. The romantic kind, I mean. What is it, really? How do we know we're feeling it? How do we know of its presence, and how do we know it won't ever leave, that it'll change?

We don't. So I don't anticipate on _love_ anytime soon.

I stared at the letter in my hands, my doubts confirmed. Renee was getting a divorce for the fifth time. This time, it was the disintegration of her marriage with a minor league baseball player, Phil Dwyer. He kept her on her toes, flying from state to state every time he was traded. I felt her sense of relief that I would have consistency once I turned eighteen and moved out.

I read her letter, part by part, bit by bit. Renee didn't know for the life of her how to work a computer, so email was out of the question. I was glad—I had concrete evidence, another letter for my scrapbook that contained various pieces of her marriages, proof that some of them even existed at all.

She assured me that she'd be okay. She always was—I knew she'd be swept off her feet by some guy she met at a coffee shop in no time. I loved my mother, but on more than one occasion I found myself sceptical of her choices.

The divorce was amicable, she continued. She couldn't decide whether to stay in her current city of Jacksonville, Florida, or move back to Phoenix, Arizona, or move closer to me to Los Angeles, California. Not only did my mother make a few bad choices, she sometimes couldn't make her own decisions.

As I continued to read the letter, I felt a sinking feeling in my stomach. _We'll be dividing our belongings equally, Bella_, she wrote. _But I have some bad news..._

And that's when she dropped the bomb on me.

Phil would be cutting off my rent.

When I turned eighteen, part of me thought that Phil was relieved I was finally legal, so that I could move out and he'd be able to only have to take care of my mother. But he did take care of me, in some ways. He let me pick out my apartment and agreed to pay the rent for me, as long as I kept up my GPA and got my own job, as well. I was okay with these terms. I had always been independent, but I knew he knew my mother wanted to help out in some way.

And no, my mother was in no way, in any shape or form, a gold digger. She just "fell in love". A lot.

I was truly screwed. The money I made working at the library barely paid for my other bills, and covering the cost of rent too... I knew I should've picked a smaller apartment. But spaciousness of it tempted me.

_Please call me so we can discuss this Bella... I'm sorry it had to affect your living situation_, Renee wrote. I folded my arms. What was I going to do? I needed to remain calm, but all I wanted to do was scream. I grabbed my phone, my fingers itching to dial my best friend Angela and bitch and moan, but I knew I was better off dealing with the situation now. I dialled Renee's number, hoping that I'd remember to reverse the charges later.

"Hi, sweetie," Renee said in a sheepish voice. "Did you get my letter?"

"Mom," I said, my voice breaking. I was afraid I'd start whining, so I tried to keep my cool. "Is this really happening?"

"No need for the drama, Bells. We'll be okay. Phil and I are still good friends," Renee murmured into the phone. Still friends? I knew they would lose touch by next year.

I didn't want to sound bratty, but it was hard for me to not panic. "Mom, what does this mean for my living situation?"

I knew Renee was trying to sound optimistic. "Phil and I talked it over, sweetie, and although he won't be paying your rent, we've found another solution." It was just like my mom to try to make the best out of the situation, to try to make her ex-husband look like the good guy.

"You can get a couple of roommates!"

I put one hand over my face. "Will Phil be paying next month's rent...?" Although I truly loved this apartment, another month would give me some time to find another. Renee's hesitation indicated that no, he wouldn't.

"He'll be moving to Chicago, sweetie, as soon as possible. They need him there. What's wrong with the roommate idea?"

I wasn't exactly a social butterfly. Although I had a few friends, I wasn't even at ease with _them_ living with me, sharing the same things and living, eating, sleeping and breathing in the same place. No way.

"I have to go now Bella. Phil's lawyer is here. I'll talk to you later about everything, okay? If you want you could even talk to Phil," Mom apologized. After she hung up, I frowned. There was no way in hell I was going to call Phil. I crossed the living room to enter my room. Opening the closet door, I stared at the neat shelves and hangers with what little clothes and shoes and accessories I had. Sighing, I started taking out the little piles and stacking them on my bed.

There was a knock at the door. I opened it, and my best friend came striding through the door. "Bella! You're not dressed? We were supposed to see a movie," she looked at me, confused. I sighed, and my best friend Angela stepped into the apartment. I closed the door behind her.

"Guess who I saw coming upstairs! And, God, Bella, you are more right every day, his smile just gets better and—" at the sight of my face, her voice faltered. "What's going on? Are you alright?"

"Ang, I think I have to move out," I confessed, flopping down onto my bed. Ang pushed up her glasses and blinked at me. "Why?"

"Phil is cutting off my rent," I murmured, not wanting to sound like a brat.

"What? Why?"

"My mom is getting a divorce," I said calmly, closing my eyes. I'd had to explain that one one too many times. I was almost a pro at it.

"Bella, you can't leave this apartment! Think of all the thought you put into having it in the first place, you looked at the ceiling, the countertop, the space, the windows..." It was just like Angela to look away from the main idea, to steer away from the obvious, she was just that nice. She could've pointed out that this was my mother's fifth divorce, but she didn't. She didn't feel the need to.

"I know. And I'll have to find a way to keep it," I said, sitting up now. Angela sat down and watched as I paced back and forth. "I could pick up some more shifts... baby-sitting service, dog-walking service... have you seen how many dogs have been popping up at the park lately?"

Angela silently played with her long dark brown braids as she watched me. Her silence and lack of response caused me to stop and turn to her. "Angela, please tell me these are some good ideas."

"I would love to, Bella, but I think you're overlooking the obvious ways to keep this apartment," Angela said seriously, shaking her head. I feared she would say the exact same things my mother had.

"You could get some roommates."

I groaned and flopped back down on the bed. "The exact same thing my mom told me, Ang. The exact same thing." Angela looked at me with a smile. "Because it's true, Bella. There's no easier way." I looked at her with a hopeful smile. "Will you be my roommate?"

Angela laughed. "No can do, Bella, I'm perfectly fine right where I am. And I think Ben is planning to ask me to move in with him..."

I grinned. "Oh, right." Angela blushed. "Don't be dramatic, Bella, normal people have roommates, not stepfathers who can afford to pay for their rent."

It was my turn to blush. "Don't go there."

Angela loped over to my laptop, which was open on the desk. "Come on, I'll help you make a flier."

Although I'd been living in Seattle for almost two years, I had settled quite comfortably into it. At first it was a huge, sprawling city under the cover of the clouds, but then, day by day, it got progressively smaller to me. There was less unknown, less of a mystery to me as the days went by. I had forgotten about its huge population and the fact that it was quickly increasing.

Which explained why I received such a shock when, as I was posting a freshly printed flier (courtesy of Angela) on my local supermarket's bulletin board, a guy came up to me, immediately demanding when he could move in.

I was reluctant to even post one on the board in the first place. I mean, who would want to move in with me? Apparently this guy did.

I did not want anyone moving in with me in the first place. I was one of those people who preferred to be alone, who preferred home to clubbing, preferred sleeping in late than exploring Seattle. I mentally cursed Angela for making these fliers, Phil for cutting off my rent, Renee for marrying him in the first place, the both of them for helping me pick this amazing apartment. As I closed my eyes, a voice interrupted my thoughts.

"Wow, you live there?" the boy asked, all impressed. My eyes flew open and I clutched my fliers against me, a little startled. He was taller than me, with short spiky hair, dark brown eyes, and wearing a UW hoodie and track shorts. I could see his muscles, tight against the sweater, and my mouth almost dropped open. He was cute, and almost immediately I felt my face flush.

"Yeah, I do," I murmured, pushing the thumbtack deeper into the bulletin board, nervous.

"It's pretty nice there. When do I move in?" he said, searching for my reaction. My eyes widened and he began laughing, a deep laugh, but not an overly dramatic one. There was no question that he was an easy, outgoing guy. "Sorry about that. I hope you knew I was kidding around, and not a serious creep."

I nodded again. He grinned. "I was wondering if I could have your number."

I blinked at him. What was with me? Why couldn't I give him a coherent answer?

_Don't flatter yourself, Bella_, a voice in my head scolded. _He's not hitting you on you or anything. _But words still wouldn't travel out of my mouth.

He blinked back. "To call about the apartment..." Great. He must've thought I was a complete idiot, a loser. Robotically I tore off one of the numbers off the flier and handed it to him. He smiled at me again. "Great. Thanks. And your name is..."

I gulped and said, "Bella Swan."

"Well, Bella," he said, walking backwards slowly. "I'll call you later. Nice to meet you."

And with a wink, he turned around and walked off. I stood there, holding my stack of fliers, a bit of panic forming inside my head. People were actually going to move in. There was no way around it now. As much as I hated to admit it, I needed the roommates to help keep my beloved apartment.

Holding my stack of fliers, I headed toward the "Meals-On-The-Go" area of the supermarket where I counted my change to see if I could afford a small box of potato wedges. As I stood waiting in line, I looked up to see a thin, short dark-haired girl walk gracefully toward the bulletin board. She was wearing a trendy black coat and large, oversized black sunglasses.

Pulling them up over her head, she stared at the flier, squealed, and ripped a number off. She danced away, a look of pure happiness on her face. I almost dropped my fliers. Two people in ten minutes? How many people would I have to interview, how many people would be calling my apartment within the next few days? I may have to go through a gazillion interviews.

Even through those gazillion interviews, I didn't have to take long to pick. The two that I picked were two first people, the same people who I saw at the supermarket that day as I posted my desperate plea for help on the bulletin board.

What could I say? We hit it off. Their interviews went well—one was a first-year student whose parents didn't want him living in residence, and the second was a third year rethinking the degree she was taking.

In two weeks, with a knock at my door, they stood there, one looking as casual as could be, and the other looking like she just stepped out of _Vogue_ magazine. One a guy, one a girl. One short, one tall. I could go on forever about their differences. I just hoped that they could live with each other.

Their names were Jacob Black and Alice Brandon.

-

_There you have it! The first chapter to my newest story. If you've read my stories before, you know that the first chapter tends to be like this—introductions. I'll have the next chapter out as soon as I can. I hope you enjoyed! Please review!_


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